Cities and Counties Across the U.S. Flock to OpenDNS to Protect Municipal Networks and Wi-Fi Hot Spots

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Municipalities turn to OpenDNS for improved Internet security; agree OpenDNS is the industry standard for protecting multiple civic locations with ease of integration, lowest total cost of ownership and centralized management.

OpenDNS

OpenDNS is the hands-down easiest to deploy and manage for the lowest total cost of ownership.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB)January 04, 2012

OpenDNS, the world's largest and fastest-growing provider of Internet security and DNS services that deliver a safer, faster and more intelligent Internet experience to everyone, today announced that cities and counties across the U.S. are moving to OpenDNS in droves in order to comprehensively improve Internet security through the adoption of unique malware prevention strategies, Web filtering policies and cloud-based security. The cities are also leveraging OpenDNS as part of cost-saving programs that allow them to more efficiently allocate their budgets to improve and build network infrastructure.

Through its suite of services designed for businesses, city governments, schools and other municipal organizations, OpenDNS provides comprehensive Web filtering, inbound and outbound malware protection and in-depth reporting on network traffic. Because OpenDNS is a flexible and scalable cloud-based security service, it has rapidly become the preferred choice of network administrators who need to quickly deploy or update security settings for multiple civic locations serving a range of audiences.

“We’re thrilled to see the massive number of cities and counties turning to OpenDNS to improve security for their employees and residents,” said Founder and CEO of OpenDNS David Ulevitch. “OpenDNS has long been the ideal choice for cities and counties because inherent in the cloud-based security service is the solution to multiple problems: Filtering for public Wi-Fi is set-it-and-forget-it; dispersed networks can be managed remotely; it easily integrates with legacy systems; and the price is right for cities dealing with severe budget cuts.”

Cities and counties are using OpenDNS to remedy a wide range of security troubles, including the prevention of inbound and outbound malware communication on their distributed networks. John Sobieralski, network coordinator for Aspen and Pitkin County, Colo. raves, “Not only does OpenDNS provide the single most effective protection against malware and botnets because it is uniquely capable of blocking them at the request level, it accomplishes this feat while being the hands-down easiest to deploy and manage for the lowest total cost of ownership.”

Cities across the country are facing sharp budget cuts and IT administrators are forced to find innovative solutions to save costs and more efficiently leverage limited resources. While many cities would like to improve the quality and breadth of services offered to their residents, such as free public Wi-Fi hotspots, they are often inhibited by budget and security limitations. The city of Nashville, Tenn., turned to OpenDNS to ensure their free public Wi-Fi offering met CIPA compliance and was covered by world-class phishing protection. Allan Que, Network Security Advisor at Metro Government of Nashville, said “I would certainly recommend OpenDNS to other municipalities offering free Wi-Fi and looking to deploy Web filtering and phishing protections at a minimal cost.”

OpenDNS offers the same security, speed and reliability to cities of all sizes, including smaller towns, like Manvel, Texas, which uses OpenDNS to ensure its police department, city hall and public works offices have the fastest and most reliable Internet access to serve their residents. The city selected OpenDNS because it can be remotely managed through a single Web-based dashboard, which allows its team to maximize resources and spend less time performing off-site network management or maintenance. “The remote management capabilities makes my life much easier,” said Ethan Bell, the systems administrator for the city. “I have one interface to effect changes at all my locations. There is no need to log-in to independent appliances.”

The bustling west coast innovation hub of Portland, Ore., which relies on OpenDNS to protect Wi-Fi hotspots that can be accessed by its nearly 600,000 residents at points across the city, enjoys that OpenDNS requires nearly no maintenance, even for a network of its size. Matt Cavanass, information systems analyst for the city, said “Our experience with OpenDNS has been excellent and I would absolutely recommend the service to other SysAdmins and municipalities. We saved time and money, integration was a breeze and we’ve heard zero complaints since deployment – In our line of work that means a service, in this case OpenDNS, is doing a superior job.”

About OpenDNS
OpenDNS is the world's leading provider of Internet security and DNS services, enabling the world to connect to the Internet with confidence on any device, anywhere, any time. OpenDNS provides millions of businesses, schools and households with a safer, faster and more intelligent Internet experience by protecting them from malicious Web threats and providing them control over how users navigate the Internet, while dramatically increasing the network's overall performance and reliability. For more information about OpenDNS, please visit: http://www.opendns.com.